by David Jackson, USA TODAY

by David Jackson, USA TODAY

WASHINGTON - President Obama told Central American leaders Friday that they have "a shared responsibility" to halt the illegal flow of migrants across the southern border, a surge that includes thousands of unaccompanied children.

While the United States has "great compassion" for the children and other migrants, Obama said that those without proper claims to stay in the United States will be sent back to their home countries.

"We have to deter a continuing influx of children putting themselves at great risk, and families putting their children at great risk," Obama told reporters after meeting with the presidents of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

The White House session took place as Obama and aides consider plans that range from increased law enforcement at the border to the establishment of refugee screening centers in Central America.

There is also a continuing congressional debate over a $3.7 billion budget request designed to answer the border crisis. The administration's plan includes more detention centers, immigration judges and attorneys on the southern border to speed up deportation times.

Republican lawmakers who met Friday said they are discussing a $1 billion package that would include sending National Guard troops to the border, a faster deportation system, and a change in the law so that migrant children could be sent home more quickly.

Obama said that he hopes Congress acts before leaving on its summer recess next week.

The three Central America leaders - Presidents Otto Perez Molina of Guatemala, Juan Orlando Hernandez of Honduras and Salvador Sanchez Ceren of El Salvador - said after the Obama meeting that they want American help in addressing the root causes of the immigration problem. That includes poverty and the rise of drug traffickers and criminal gangs throughout their region.

They and other officials from Mexico and Central America have called on the United States to address American demands for illegal drugs, a major factor behind the drug violence that prompts many of their residents to flee.

In his statement to reporters, Obama said "an unprecedented" number of border agents and other security resources have already been dispatched to the border, and more are on the way.

"In addition to being a nation of immigrants, we are also a nation of laws," Obama said.

Aides said Obama asked the three Central American presidents to urge their citizens not to make the often hazardous journey to the U.S. border and warn them they will be deported if caught.

The Obama administration has tried to deliver the same message via a public communications campaign in Central America, part of what White House spokesman Josh Earnest called an overall effort "to stem the flow (of migrants) at the source."

More than 57,000 migrant children have arrived in the USA since October, most of them from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador, though Obama said that number has fallen in recent weeks.

"Initial reports show that our joint efforts appear to be paying off, and the number of unaccompanied children crossing the border this month appears to have dropped by half since June," Obama told his fellow presidents. "Of course, it's still too high, and so today we agreed to continue to work together."

Hernandez of Honduras said during a speech Thursday in Washington that human smugglers in his country take advantage of "ambiguities" within the American immigration system.

Smugglers give parents in Honduras "a totally wrong" interpretation of American policy, Hernandez said, telling them "'you can get your kids in the U.S.; we can do it for you.'"

Obama called on Congress to pass what he calls "comprehensive immigration reform." His plan includes a pathway to citizenship for people in the country illegally, a provision Republicans oppose as "amnesty" for lawbreakers.

The Obama administration is considering other proposals to try to address the sharp spike in illegal migration.

Among them: a pilot program to screen youths in their home countries, designed to determine whether they quality for refugee status. The program would start in Honduras, which has the most migrants, and could be expanded to other countries.

"This is still in the discussion phase," Earnest said.

Officials are also considering a request by Texas Gov. Rick Perry to dispatch National Guard troops to the U.S.-Mexican border. The administration sent a team to the border this week to study whether the Guard could help.

Obama prepared for the Central America meeting in a phone call Thursday with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto. They talked about ways to work with Central American neighbors to stop the flow of illegal migration, including an emphasis on "underlying causes" of the problems.

"They discussed the possibility of regional programs that would pool resources to improve public security and increase economic opportunities in Central America," the White House said in a statement.